Today we’d like to introduce you to James Huang and Elizabeth Sandy.
James and Elizabeth, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
James Huang: Yellow Sun Films is a boutique film production and photography company I created with my wife, Elizabeth Sandy. We work with a large network of qualified filmmakers, musicians, actors, and artists that we call friends here in Los Angeles.
I met Elizabeth while working on a script titled ‘All Your Fault.’ That was responsible for our meeting in the first place. I say it was responsible because she had submitted herself as an actress on the project after I advertised a casting session for the lead female role. I had shortlisted her for the casting and her headshot sat on my desk for two weeks before I literally bumped into her at an audition.
I of course recognized her face but she didn’t know me from a bar of soap (Elizabeth is Australian and her colloquialisms have rubbed off on me.) Eventually, we got to talking, and I found out she has a university degree in Professional Writing. And so began a journey of rewrites and edits, inevitably growing into a relationship, co-habitation and now marriage and parenthood to two wonderful little boys, Cooper and Sidney.
When we moved in together, it sort of hit me like a bolt of lightning how to write the movie properly. Elizabeth had helped me find the female voice in the story. And so ‘All Your Fault’ became the aptly named ‘Starting from Scratch’ – a romantic comedy about divorce and taxes. (I know such funny subject matter right?) We played the festival circuit, won several awards, and got a distribution deal.
The film is readily available to stream online (iTunes, Amazon, Vimeo.) Since then, we have been producing, and editing content for countless clients including everything from indie feature films, documentaries, short films, web series, TV commercials, promo videos, live events, and everyday actor needs like self-tapes, headshots, and demo reels.
We’ve also been consultants and hired hands for many other filmmaker’s projects, serving as everything from production manager, stunt coordinator, art department, post-production supervisor, and gear rental. Both Elizabeth and I started acting over twenty-five years ago and have been saturated in every aspect of filmmaking.
We make a good team where I am very involved hands-on with cinematography, photography, directing, producing, and editing, while Elizabeth is a great director, writer, coach, and especially, shines as a business and financial person. She’s a ferocious producer that many companies have hired for her meticulous organizational skills and fervor. I also recently have earned a certificate degree in photography from UCLA.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Nothing worth doing in life comes easy. Working with your spouse is not for everyone. Marriage can be difficult enough without that extra work dynamic.
Luckily for us, we compliment each other’s set of skills very well. We’re respectful of each other’s talents, work ethic and drive. I’m proud to say we make a great team.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Yellow Sun Films – what should we know?
We are a boutique production company that specializes in filmmaking, photography, and video editing. We have produced award-winning feature films, web series, and live events. We photograph weddings, headshots, and even products. We have edited feature films, national TV commercials, and actor demo reels.
Our network of freelance filmmakers, crew, and on-camera talent are chosen from an extremely talented group of Los Angeles professionals on a job-by-job basis. We like to nurture the indie artist and hope that our years of experience can benefit those just starting out as well as deliver quality work to already established businesses.
Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
Elizabeth and I started this company using our experience of 25+ years in the film and television industry. We rely heavily on referrals and strive to always leave our clients satisfied and proud of the work. We don’t advertise so we just have to trust that our body of work continues to be seen and referrals bring in new jobs.
We cast a wide net in what we’re able to do, so we have gone from filmmaking one week to photographing pizzas for a new pizza franchise, to shooting celebrity birthday parties, to coaching and filming actors for self-tapes. We have both always loved the arts and thrived on being creative. We both started with a theatre background where multitasking is vital to get a show-up –and-running.
Over the years in learning the craft of filmmaking, it’s important to learn many aspects of the industry, which allows you to work well with each crew member… Many great teachers, directors and working on hundreds of film sets have helped inform our choices as artists and entertainment professionals.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.YellowSunFilms.com,
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: www.Instagram.com/YellowSunWeddings, www.Instagram.com/theelizabethsandy, www.Instagram.com/1jameshuangphoto
- Other: www.StartingFromScratchMovie.com, www.1JamesHuang.com/photo
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